In the agricultural industry, conventional load hauling trailers or wagons are used for a variety of purposes. One of these uses is to mix, carry and distribute feed for animals or livestock. Many of these wagons combine all of the mixing, hauling and distribution into a single implement and thus require a variety of devices or features be incorporated into the wagon. Due to the complex nature of the wagons, it is not uncommon for purchasers of the wagons to return the wagons to the manufacturer, distributor or dealer for warranty repairs or service. Experience by the dealers, distributors and manufacturers indicates that at least a significant proportion of the warranty claims are due to users exceeding the weight limits which the wagons are designed and built to handle.
Many of these conventional wagons do incorporate a load cell or some other weight measuring device for use in loading the wagons with appropriate proportions of feed or other loads. These load cells are typically accurate while the wagon is generally stationary, such as while loading or unloading. These load cells are typically not dampened or configured to indicate an accurate weight when the wagon is moving and thus subject to a more dynamic array of forces. It is also conventional for wagons including a load cell to include a digital readout positioned to be viewed by an operator, as well as for storing one or more of the weights indicated by the load cell.
Thus, load information may be available from the load cell through the processor. However, due to the static load forces to which the wagon is subjected while stationary and the dynamic forces to which the wagon is subjected while moving, such a load cell and associated read out cannot conventionally distinguish between the two. Without information from the load cell that can indicate clearly and reliably if a wagon returned for repair was overloaded or failed for some other reason, the dealer, distributor or manufacturer cannot tell if a wagon is properly designed for its intended use. This may lead to excess warranty repairs and to the sale and use of wagons which are not suitable to haul the loads for which they are rated.
Improvements to the measurement of peak weights in load cell equipped wagons and other mobile containers, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,572,257, are desirable. The disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 6,572,257 is incorporated herein by reference.